Atlan and General Traver are on the move with three Shozide T-
cruisers in the middle of enemy country to get information about the
military strength of Tagg Kharzani's troops. They want to try to
carry off a strategic star map. Therefore, the T-cruisers fly to the
Kher system, the heart of Kharzani's empire, - there, they have
the chance to pull an important tip from the radio traffic. News is
caught that there is a Kybb space fort in the Ashaween system, but
no mobile hostile armed forces, especially no Kybb-Titans. This fort
would be perfect for their purpose. In addition, Traver uses the
short stay in the Kher system to show Atlan that an artificial dust
cloud, which allows no sensor detection inside it, surrounds the
whole solar system. What is really inside the huge cloud of dust
remains completely veiled.

Boarding parties are required for the attack on the space fort. The
Death Group, a practiced team of the eighty best and hardest Shozide
male and female fighters who also call themselves, with pleasure,
the " Iron "and the "Steel" takes over this job. They live
only for the fight. There is no spare time for them - between their
missions they are endlessly training, and it is brutal. The newest,
and at first not properly accepted member of the Death Group is
Rorkhete. The former nomad had crept aboard Atlan's T-cruiser
ELEBATO as a stowaway to escape from his existence as a breeding
bull, and wanted to train under the Death Group. His martial
comrades had impressed him so that he stubbornly remains, until they
allow him to train with the Iron. During the following days, while
the ELEBATO flies with its two sister ships to the Kher system and
afterwards to the Kybb space fort, Rorkhete takes the worst beating
of his life with the Iron at first. However, bit by bit, he learns
and manages to earn some respect. He is then even grudgingly allowed
to take part in the attack on the fort.

The penetration runs well in the beginning, in spite of the violent
opposition of the Kybbs. The Shozides have to mourn only a few
deaths, but the main computers of the station are cracked. Exactly
the information they are looking for is stored there. However, the
Kybb are attempting to overload a fusion reactor unnoticed, in order
to destroy the station, which would also take along the T-cruisers
floating nearby to their doom. Rorkhete alone manages to catch onto
this plan just in time. On his own, he slows down the Kybbs long
enough for reinforcements to arrive. He is badly wounded in the
process, but lives and because of this heroic deed is now a full and
respected member of the Death Group.

Even as the three T-cruisers try to make a getaway, twenty cylinder
discs of the Kybb appear. While the T-cruisers would be able to deal
with this menace, unfortunately the massive amounts of energy being
released attract the attention of the two Hyperdimos rumored to be
in the area to the ships. One of the huge beings rushes at the
cylinder discs, while the second takes a direct course on the
ELEBATO, which cannot avoid it and is radiated into hyperspace. When
the two other T-cruisers arrive back on Gray Foam, they have to
deliver not only the star map, which is important for the war, but
also the sad news: Atlan is presumably dead! The time of death is
given as September 27th, 1332 NGE, 03:08 AM. There is an even more
frightful announcement coming in at the same time: The Kybbs have
destroyed the planet Silhoo, one of Carya Andaxi's shadow
government worlds.